U.S. patent application number 16/981909 was filed with the patent office on 2021-04-22 for vehicle control device and vehicle control system.
The applicant listed for this patent is Hitachi Automotive Systems, Ltd.. Invention is credited to Ryoh INABA, Tsutomu KANEKO, Naoyuki TASHIRO, Katsuro WATANABE.
Application Number | 20210116926 16/981909 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 1000005331244 |
Filed Date | 2021-04-22 |
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United States Patent
Application |
20210116926 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
INABA; Ryoh ; et
al. |
April 22, 2021 |
Vehicle Control Device and Vehicle Control System
Abstract
There are provided a vehicle control device and a vehicle
control system capable of improving efficiency and reliability of
auto valet parking compared to the related art when a communication
failure occurs. A vehicle control device mounted on a vehicle
includes a recognition unit, an estimation unit, a communication
unit, a determination unit, a trajectory generation unit, a vehicle
control unit, and a retreated position decision unit. When the
determination unit determines that communication of the
communication unit is abnormal, the trajectory generation unit
generates a target trajectory along which the vehicle drives to a
retreated position decided by the retreated position decision
unit.
Inventors: |
INABA; Ryoh; (Tokyo, JP)
; TASHIRO; Naoyuki; (Tokyo, JP) ; KANEKO;
Tsutomu; (Hitachinaka-shi, JP) ; WATANABE;
Katsuro; (Hitachinaka-shi, JP) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Hitachi Automotive Systems, Ltd. |
Hitachinaka-shi, Ibaraki |
|
JP |
|
|
Family ID: |
1000005331244 |
Appl. No.: |
16/981909 |
Filed: |
March 6, 2019 |
PCT Filed: |
March 6, 2019 |
PCT NO: |
PCT/JP2019/008760 |
371 Date: |
September 17, 2020 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G08G 1/0968 20130101;
G07C 5/0808 20130101; G05D 1/0214 20130101; G05D 1/0276 20130101;
G07C 5/008 20130101; G08G 1/14 20130101 |
International
Class: |
G05D 1/02 20060101
G05D001/02; G08G 1/0968 20060101 G08G001/0968; G08G 1/14 20060101
G08G001/14; G07C 5/00 20060101 G07C005/00 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Mar 20, 2018 |
JP |
2018-053173 |
Claims
1. A vehicle control device mounted on a vehicle, the device
comprising: a recognition unit that recognizes a driving
environment around the vehicle; an estimation unit that estimates a
position of the vehicle based on the driving environment; a
communication unit that communicates with an external facility of
the vehicle; a determination unit that determines whether or not a
failure occurs in the communication; a trajectory generation unit
that generates a target trajectory along which the vehicle
autonomously drives; a vehicle control unit that causes the vehicle
to drive along the target trajectory; and a retreated position
decision unit that decides a retreated position of the vehicle
based on the communication and the driving environment, wherein the
trajectory generation unit generates the target trajectory along
which the vehicle drives to the retreated position when the
determination unit determines that the communication is
abnormal.
2. The vehicle control device according to claim 1, wherein the
retreated position decision unit transmits the retreated position
to the external facility via the communication unit, and the
trajectory generation unit generates the target trajectory along
which the vehicle drives to the retreated position transmitted to
the external facility immediately before the determination when the
determination unit determines that the communication is
abnormal.
3. The vehicle control device according to claim 2, wherein the
communication unit reduces a period of the communication at an
intersection of paths along which the vehicle drives.
4. The vehicle control device according to claim 2, wherein the
determination unit reduces a period of the determination at an
intersection of paths along which the vehicle drives.
5. The vehicle control device according to claim 2, wherein the
vehicle control unit decelerates the vehicle at an intersection of
paths along which the vehicle drives.
6. The vehicle control device according to claim 2, further
comprising: an inter-vehicle communication unit that performs
communication between the vehicle and another vehicle, wherein the
inter-vehicle communication unit transmits a position and a speed
of the vehicle to the other vehicle when the determination unit
determines that the communication of the communication unit is
abnormal.
7. A vehicle control system comprising: the vehicle control device
according to claim 1; and a management center that manages the
vehicle, wherein the management center includes a center
communication unit that communicates with the communication unit, a
storage device that has map information of a parking lot that the
vehicle is moved in and out, and a computing device that decides a
parking position of the vehicle.
8. The vehicle control system according to claim 7, wherein the
computing device includes a center determination unit that
determines whether or not a failure occurs in the communication
with the vehicle, the center communication unit receives the
retreated position transmitted from the vehicle via the
communication unit, the storage device records the retreated
position received by the center communication unit, and the
computing device estimates, as a position of the vehicle, the
retreated position stored in the storage device immediately before
the determination when the center determination unit determines
that the communication is abnormal.
Description
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0001] The present invention relates to a vehicle control device
and a vehicle control system.
BACKGROUND ART
[0002] In the related art, an invention related to a vehicle
communication device that determines an abnormality of a
short-range communication unit has been known (see PTL 1 below).
The vehicle communication device described in PTL 1 is used in a
vehicle, and includes a reception unit, a reference value setting
unit, an acquisition unit, and an abnormality determination unit
(see PTL 1 and claim 1).
[0003] The reception unit receives a communication performance
index indicating the performance of the short-range communication
unit from a peripheral vehicle including the short-range
communication unit. The reference value setting unit sequentially
sets a reference value serving as a reference of the communication
performance index based on communication performance indexes
received by the reception unit from a plurality of peripheral
vehicles. The acquisition unit acquires the communication
performance index of the target short-range communication unit that
is the short-range communication unit as an abnormality
determination target. The abnormality determination unit determines
an abnormality of the target short-range communication unit based
on the comparison of the reference value set by the reference value
setting unit with the communication performance index of the target
short-range communication unit acquired by the acquisition
unit.
[0004] In the vehicle communication device of the related art, the
reference value set by the reference value setting unit is set from
communication performance indexes acquired from the plurality of
peripheral vehicles, and communication environments of the
peripheral vehicles are similar to each other. Thus, when the
communication performance of the target short-range communication
unit changes due to the influence of the communication environment,
the reference value also changes according to the communication
environment (see PTL 1 and paragraph 0009).
[0005] The abnormality determination of the target short-range
communication unit is performed based on the comparison of the
reference value with the communication performance index of the
target short-range communication unit. Thus, a case where the
communication performance index of the target short-range
communication unit has an abnormal value due to the abnormality of
the target short-range communication unit and a case where the
target short-range communication unit is not abnormal and the
target short-range communication unit is influenced by the
communication environment and the communication performance index
of the target short-range communication unit has an abnormal value
can be accurately distinguished. Accordingly, it is possible to
accurately determine the abnormality of the target short-range
communication unit (see PTL 1 and paragraph 0010).
CITATION LIST
Patent Literature
[0006] PTL 1: JP 2016-144076 A
SUMMARY OF INVENTION
Technical Problem
[0007] Autonomous vehicles capable of performing autonomous driving
have been developed, and auto valet parking for the autonomous
vehicles has been studied. In the auto valet parking, for example,
communication is performed between a management center that manages
a parking lot and the autonomous vehicle, and the autonomous
vehicle automatically moves into a designated parking position by
the autonomous driving or automatically moves out from a parking
position.
[0008] However, there is a concern that a failure occurs in
communication between the management center and the autonomous
vehicle when the autonomous vehicle moves in and out from the
parking lot. In such a case, in the vehicle communication device of
the related art, the abnormality of the communication unit can be
determined, but the designated parking position cannot be
determined. Thus, there is a concern that the autonomous driving of
the autonomous vehicle is hindered. For example, in the management
center, the position of the vehicle in which the communication
failure occurs cannot be confirmed, and the moving-in and -out of
other vehicles are restricted. Thus, there is a concern that
efficiency and reliability of the auto valet parking
deteriorate.
[0009] The present disclosure provides a vehicle control device and
a vehicle control system capable of improving efficiency and
reliability of auto valet parking compared to the related art when
a communication failure occurs.
Solution to Problem
[0010] An aspect of the present disclosure is a vehicle control
device mounted on a vehicle. The vehicle control device includes a
recognition unit that recognizes a driving environment around the
vehicle, an estimation unit that estimates a position of the
vehicle based on the driving environment, a communication unit that
communicates with an external facility of the vehicle, a
determination unit that determines whether or not a failure occurs
in the communication, a trajectory generation unit that generates a
target trajectory along which the vehicle autonomously drives, a
vehicle control unit that causes the vehicle to drive along the
target trajectory, and a retreated position decision unit that
decides a retreated position of the vehicle based on the
communication and the driving environment, wherein the trajectory
generation unit generates the target trajectory along which the
vehicle drives to the retreated position when the determination
unit determines that the communication is abnormal.
Advantageous Effects of Invention
[0011] According to the present disclosure, it is possible to
provide the vehicle control device and the vehicle control system
capable of improving the efficiency and reliability of the auto
valet parking compared to the related art when the communication
failure occurs.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
[0012] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a
configuration of a vehicle.
[0013] FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a vehicle control device and a
vehicle control system according to a first embodiment.
[0014] FIG. 3 is a schematic plan view illustrating an example of a
parking lot in which the vehicle is parked.
[0015] FIG. 4 is a flowchart for describing operations of the
vehicle control device and the vehicle control system of FIG.
2.
[0016] FIG. 5 is a block diagram of a vehicle control device and a
vehicle control system according to a second embodiment.
[0017] FIG. 6 is a flowchart for describing operations of the
vehicle control device and the vehicle control system of FIG.
5.
DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS
[0018] Hereinafter, embodiments of a vehicle control device and a
vehicle control system according to the present disclosure will be
described with reference to the drawings.
First Embodiment
[0019] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a
configuration of a vehicle 1 having the vehicle control device
according to the embodiment of the present disclosure mounted
thereon. The vehicle 1 is, for example, an autonomous vehicle
capable of performing autonomous driving, and includes various
sensors 2, a global positioning system (GPS) 3, a communication
device 4, an electrical control unit (ECU) 5, and various actuators
6.
[0020] The sensor 2 includes, for example, a monocular camera, a
stereo camera, an ultrasonic sensor, a radar, a Laser Imaging
Detection and Ranging (LIDAR), a vehicle speed sensor, an
acceleration sensor, an angular acceleration sensor, an accelerator
opening degree sensor, a brake sensor, and a steering sensor. The
GPS 3 includes, for example, an in-vehicle GPS including a GPS
antenna, a GPS receiver, map information, and road information.
[0021] The communication device 4 is, for example, a wireless
communication device used for communication between the vehicle 1
and a management center through road-to-vehicle communication or a
wireless base station, and includes transmission and reception
antennas and transmission and reception devices. The ECU 5 is, for
example, a control unit that includes a computer unit including a
storage device such as a RAM and a ROM and a central processing
unit (CPU) and performs control of the vehicle 1 including
autonomous driving.
[0022] The actuator 6 includes, for example, an accelerator
actuator, a brake actuator, and a steering actuator. For example,
the actuator 6 automatically operates an accelerator, a brake, and
a steering wheel of the vehicle 1 in order to cause the vehicle 1
to autonomously drive under the control of the ECU 5.
[0023] FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a schematic
configuration of a vehicle control device 10 and a vehicle control
system 100 according to the first embodiment of the present
disclosure. Although details will be described below, the vehicle
control device 10 and the vehicle control system 100 according to
the present embodiment each have the following features.
[0024] The vehicle control device 10 is a device mounted on the
vehicle 1 that is the autonomous vehicle, and includes a
recognition unit 11, an estimation unit 12, a communication unit
13, a determination unit 14, a trajectory generation unit 15, a
vehicle control unit 16 and a retreated position decision unit 17.
The recognition unit 11 recognizes a driving environment around the
vehicle 1. The estimation unit 12 estimates a position of the
vehicle 1 based on the driving environment thereof. The
communication unit 13 communicates with a management center 20
which is an external facility of the vehicle 1. The determination
unit 14 determines whether or not a communication failure occurs.
The trajectory generation unit 15 generates a target trajectory
along which the vehicle 1 autonomously drives. The vehicle control
unit 16 causes the vehicle 1 to drive along the target trajectory.
The retreated position decision unit 17 decides a retreated
position of the vehicle 1 based on the communication with the
management center 20 and the driving environment recognized by the
recognition unit 11. When the determination unit 14 determines that
the communication is abnormal, the trajectory generation unit 15
generates the target trajectory along which the vehicle 1 drives to
the retreated position.
[0025] The vehicle control system 100 includes the vehicle control
device 10 mounted on the vehicle 1, and the management center 20
that manages the vehicle 1. The management center 20 includes a
center communication unit 21 that communicates with the
communication unit 13 of the vehicle control device 10, a storage
device 22 that has map information of a parking lot PA (see FIG. 3)
at which the vehicle 1 moves in and out, and a computing device 23
that decides a parking position of the vehicle 1. Hereinafter,
configurations of the vehicle control device 10 and the vehicle
control system 100 according to the present embodiment will be
described in detail.
[0026] First, each configuration of the vehicle control device will
be described in detail. The recognition unit 11 includes, for
example, the sensor 2 and the ECU 5 mounted on the vehicle 1. For
example, the recognition unit 11 is configured to recognize, for
example, the driving environment around the vehicle 1 including
shapes, sizes, positions, moving directions, and moving speeds of
roads, paths, white lines, signs, signals, other vehicles,
pedestrians, buildings, and obstacles around the vehicle 1. For
example, the recognition unit 11 is configured to recognize
information of the vehicle 1 on which the vehicle control device 10
is mounted, that is, information of the host vehicle, such as a
speed, an acceleration, an angular acceleration, an accelerator
opening degree, a brake pressure, and a steering angle of the
vehicle 1.
[0027] The estimation unit 12 includes, for example, the sensor 2,
the GPS 3, and the ECU 5 mounted on the vehicle 1. The estimation
unit 12 is configured to estimate the position of the vehicle 1
based on the driving environment recognized by the recognition unit
11. The estimation unit 12 is configured to estimate a current
position of the vehicle 1 based on, for example, map information,
road information, and a positioning result obtained by the GPS 3.
The estimation unit 12 is configured to estimate the current
position of the vehicle 1 based on, for example, information
received from the management center 20 via the communication unit
13 and the driving environment recognized by the recognition unit
11.
[0028] The communication unit 13 includes, for example, the
communication device 4 and the ECU 5 mounted on the vehicle 1. The
communication unit 13 is configured to communicate with the
management center 20 which is an external facility of the vehicle
1. More specifically, for example, the vehicle control device 10
receives map information and empty vehicle information of the
parking lot PA (see FIG. 3) at which the vehicle 1 moves in and
out, and information of the decided parking position of the vehicle
1 from the management center 20 via the communication unit 13. For
example, the vehicle control device 10 transmits information such
as a driving environment, a position, a speed, an acceleration, and
an angular acceleration of the vehicle 1, and information on the
retreated position of the vehicle 1 decided by the retreated
position decision unit 17 to the management center 20 via the
communication unit 13. The external equipment with which the
communication unit 13 communicates is not limited to the management
center 20, and may be, for example, a vehicle monitoring system
provided in the parking lot PA (see FIG. 3).
[0029] For example, the communication unit 13 is configured to
shorten a communication period at an intersection XPT (see FIG. 3)
of paths P1, P2, P3, P4, and P5 along which the vehicle 1 drives.
For example, a self-propelling parking lot PA (see FIG. 3) such as
a flat parking lot or a multi-story parking lot has usually a
plurality of parking sections B1 and B2. Each of the parking
sections B1 and B2 has a plurality of parking frames b11, . . . ,
and b26, and one vehicle 1 is parked in each of the parking frames
b11, . . . , and b26.
[0030] In the parking lot PA having the plurality of parking
sections B1 and B2, while the vehicle 1 is autonomously driving
within the parking lot PA, the parking position of the vehicle 1
may be changed from an initially designated parking section B1 to
the other parking section B2 by the management center 20. In such a
case, for example, the communication unit 13 may be configured to
shorten the period of the communication from at a time when the
vehicle 1 which is autonomously driving along a certain parking
section B1 reaches an edge of the parking section B1 to a time when
this vehicle moves to a driving route along the next parking
section B2.
[0031] The determination unit 14 includes, for example, the
communication device 4 and the ECU 5 mounted on the vehicle 1. The
determination unit 14 is configured to determine whether or not
there is a communication failure of the communication unit 13. More
specifically, the determination unit 14 determines whether or not
the communication failure of the communication unit 13 occurs by
detecting an abnormal signal of the communication device 4 of the
vehicle 1. For example, the determination unit 14 is configured to
determine whether or not the communication failure of the
communication unit 13 occurs by detecting an electromagnetic
interference between the management center 20 and the communication
unit 13 of the vehicle control device 10. Here, the electromagnetic
interference includes a null point generated when a direct wave and
an interference wave overlap each other at a reception point in
opposite phases and cancel each other.
[0032] For example, the determination unit 14 is configured to
shorten a period of determination of whether a communication
failure between the communication unit 13 and the management center
20 occurs at the intersection XPT (see FIG. 3) of the paths P1, P2,
P3, P4, and P5 at which the vehicle 1 drives. For example, the
determination unit 14 can be configured to shorten the period of
the determination from a time when the vehicle 1 that is
autonomously driving along a certain parking section B1 reaches the
edge of the parking section B1 to a time when the vehicle moves to
the driving route along the next parking section B2 in the parking
lot PA having the plurality of parking sections B1 and B2 as
described above.
[0033] The trajectory generation unit 15 includes, for example, the
ECU 5 mounted on the vehicle 1. The trajectory generation unit 15
generates a target trajectory along which the vehicle autonomously
drives. More specifically, the trajectory generation unit 15 is
configured to generate a target trajectory along which the vehicle
1 autonomously drives from the current position to the parking
position based on the map information of the parking lot PA
received from the management center 20 via the communication unit
13 and the decided parking position of the vehicle 1.
[0034] When the determination unit 14 determines that the
communication between the communication unit 13 and the management
center 20 is abnormal, the trajectory generation unit 15 is
configured to generate the target trajectory along which the
vehicle 1 drives to the retreated position decided by the retreated
position decision unit 17. For example, when the determination unit
14 determines that the communication is abnormal as described
above, the trajectory generation unit 15 is configured to generate
the target trajectory along which the vehicle 1 autonomously drives
to the retracted position transmitted to the management center 20
immediately before the determination.
[0035] The vehicle control unit 16 includes, for example, the
sensor 2, the ECU 5, and the actuator 6 mounted on the vehicle 1.
For example, the vehicle control unit 16 causes the vehicle 1 to
drive along the target trajectory generated by the trajectory
generation unit 15 according to the recognition result of the
driving environment by the recognition unit 11 and the map
information and the empty vehicle information of the parking lot
PA.
[0036] For example, the vehicle control unit 16 is configured to
decelerate the vehicle 1 at the intersection XPT of the paths P1,
P2, P3, P4, and P5 (see FIG. 3) in which the vehicle drives and
accordingly decrease a steering angular speed. In the parking lot
PA having the plurality of parking sections B1 and B2 as described
above, the vehicle control unit 16 may be configured to decelerate
the vehicle 1 from at a time when the vehicle 1 that is
autonomously driving along a certain parking section B1 reaches the
edge of the parking section B1 to a time when the vehicle moves the
driving route along the next parking section B2.
[0037] The retreated position decision unit 17 includes, for
example, the ECU 5 mounted on the vehicle 1. The retreated position
decision unit 17 decides the retreated position of the vehicle 1
based on, for example, communication between the management center
20 and the communication unit 13 of the vehicle 1 and the driving
environment recognized by the recognition unit 11. For example, the
retreated position decision unit 17 is configured to transmit the
decided retreated position to the management center 20 via the
communication unit 13.
[0038] Next, each configuration of the vehicle control system 100
will be described in detail. The vehicle control system 100
includes, for example, a plurality of vehicle control devices 10
mounted on a plurality of vehicles 1. One vehicle control device 10
is mounted on one vehicle 1. The vehicle control system 100 may
include one management center 20, or may include a plurality of
management centers 20. For example, the management center 20 can be
arranged for each country, region, prefecture, city, town, village,
parking lot management company, or parking lot PA. When there is
the plurality of management centers 20, the vehicle control device
10 mounted on the vehicle 1 communicates with the management center
20 that manages the parking lot PA in which the vehicle 1 is to be
parked.
[0039] The management center 20 includes the center communication
unit 21, the storage device 22, and the computing device 23 that
decides the parking position of the vehicle 1. The center
communication unit 21 includes, for example, a transmitter and a
receiver, and communicates with the communication unit 13 of the
vehicle control device 10. The center communication unit 21 is
configured to communicate with the communication units 13 of the
plurality of vehicle control devices 10 through, for example,
road-to-vehicle communication or a wireless base station.
[0040] The storage device 22 includes, for example, a register, a
cache memory, a primary storage device such as a main memory, a
secondary storage device such as a hard disk, and an online
storage. The storage device 22 has, for example, map information
and empty vehicle information of one or a plurality of parking lots
PA that the vehicle 1 moves in and out. The computing device 23
includes, for example, a CPU, an arithmetic logic unit (ALU), an
adder, and a multiplier. The computing device 23 decides the
parking position of the vehicle 1 based on, for example, the
positional information of the vehicle 1, the map information and
the empty vehicle information of the parking lot PA.
[0041] The computing device 23 may include a center determination
unit 23a that determines whether or not a communication failure
with the vehicle 1 occurs. In this case, the center communication
unit 21 receives the retreated position transmitted from the
vehicle 1 via the communication unit 13, and the storage device 22
records the retreated position received by the center communication
unit 21. When the center determination unit 23a determines that the
communication is abnormal, the computing device 23 estimates, as
the position of the vehicle 1, the retreated position stored in the
storage device 22 immediately before the determination.
[0042] Hereinafter, operations of the vehicle control device 10 and
the vehicle control system 100 according to the present embodiment
will be described. FIG. 3 is a schematic plan view illustrating an
example of the parking lot PA in which the vehicle 1 having the
vehicle control device 10 mounted thereon is parked. FIG. 4 is a
flowchart for describing an example of the operations of the
vehicle control device 10 and the vehicle control system 100
illustrated in FIG. 2.
[0043] In the example illustrated in FIG. 3, the parking lot PA
includes an alighting porch CP1, a riding porch CP2, a first
parking section B1, a second parking section B2, a first path P1, a
second path P2, a third path P3, a fourth path P4, and a fifth path
P5. Each of the first parking section B1 and the second parking
section B2 has a plurality of parking frames b11, . . . , and b26
arranged in an array of 6 rows in a depth direction of the parking
lot PA and two columns in a width direction of the parking lot
PA.
[0044] The first path P1, the second path P2, and the third path P3
extend in the depth direction of the parking lot PA, and the fourth
path P4 and the fifth path P5 extend in the width direction of the
parking lot PA. The first path P1, the second path P2, and the
third path P3 have the intersection XPT with the fourth path P4 and
the fifth path P5. The first path P1, the third path P3, the fourth
path P4, and the fifth path P5 form a rectangular ring orbital path
surrounding the first parking section B1 and the second parking
section B2. The second path P2 extends between the first parking
section B1 and the second parking section B2.
[0045] For example, when auto valet parking in which the vehicle 1
which is the autonomous vehicle having the vehicle control device
10 mounted thereon automatically moves in and out from the parking
lot PA is performed, an occupant who tries to move the vehicle 1 in
the parking lot stops the vehicle 1 at the alighting porch CP1 and
alights from the vehicle. The vehicle control device 10 of the
vehicle 1 in which the occupant alights and there is no person
performs communication between the communication unit 13 and the
center communication unit 21 of the management center 20 (step
S1).
[0046] Accordingly, the vehicle control device 10 receives the map
information, the empty vehicle information, and the information on
the parking position of the parking lot PA from the management
center 20 via the communication unit 13.
[0047] The management center 20 receives, via the center
communication unit 21, the positional information and the
information such as the speed, the acceleration, and the angular
acceleration of the vehicle 1 transmitted from the vehicle control
device 10 of the vehicle 1 via the communication unit 13.
[0048] In the example illustrated in FIG. 3, the parking frame b13
in the first column and the third row of the first parking section
B1 is empty. The vehicle 1 moves out, and thus, the parking frame
b22 in the second row and the second column of the first parking
section B1 is about to be empty. In this case, for example, the
management center 20 recognizes a state in which the parking frame
b22 in the second column and the second row of the first parking
section B1 is empty, the vehicle 1 that moves in, and the
positional information of the vehicle 1 through the communication
with a sensor that is provided in the parking lot PA to detect the
vehicle 1 being parked and the vehicle 1 that moves out.
[0049] For example, the management center 20 decides, as the
parking position of the vehicle 1 to be parked, the parking frame
b22 in the second column and the second row of the first parking
section B1 that becomes empty due to the moving-out of the vehicle
1 by the computing device 23. This parking position is an example,
and the computing device 23 of the management center 20 selects any
parking position based on, for example, a condition that can
optimize parking efficiency. The management center 20 transmits the
decided parking position to the vehicle 1 to be parked by
communicating with the communication unit 13 of the vehicle 1 via
the center communication unit 21 (step S1).
[0050] The vehicle control device 10 that receives the parking
position via the communication unit 13 causes the trajectory
generation unit 15 to generate the target trajectory at which the
vehicle 1 autonomously drives (Step S2). For example, the
trajectory generation unit 15 refers to the map information and the
empty vehicle information of the parking lot PA and the information
on the parking position received via the communication unit 13 and
the current position and the driving environment of the vehicle 1
recognized by the recognition unit 11. The trajectory generation
unit 15 generates the target trajectory along which the vehicle 1
autonomously drives from the current position to the parking
position based on the referred information.
[0051] More specifically, for example, as described above, the
vehicle control device 10 receives, as the parking position, the
positional information of the parking frame b22 in the second
column and the second row of the first parking section B1 via the
communication unit 13 (Step S1). For example, the vehicle control
device 10 causes the trajectory generation unit 15 to generate the
target trajectory along which the vehicle 1 passes through the
second path P2 via the first path P1 and the fifth path P5 from the
alighting porch CP1 and reaches the parking frame b22 which is the
parking position (step S2). This target trajectory is an example,
and the trajectory generation unit 15 can generate any target
trajectory based on, for example, the condition that can optimize
the parking efficiency.
[0052] Subsequently, in the vehicle control device 10, the vehicle
control unit 16 causes the vehicle 1 to drive along the target
trajectory (step S3), and the recognition unit 11 recognizes the
driving environment including the paths P1, . . . , and P5, white
lines, the parking sections B1 and B2, the parking frames b11, . .
. , and b26, other vehicles 1, curbs, bollards, sidewalks, walls,
columns, poles, guardrails, pedestrians, and other obstacles around
the vehicle 1 (step S4). For example, the vehicle control device 10
causes the estimation unit 12 to estimate the current position of
the vehicle 1 based on the map information and the empty vehicle
information of the parking lot PA received via the communication
unit 13 and the position of the vehicle 1 and the driving
environment obtained by the recognition unit 11 (step S5). The
autonomous driving of the vehicle 1 (step S3), the recognition of
the driving environment (step S4), and the estimation of the
position of the vehicle 1 (step S5) can be simultaneously
performed.
[0053] More specifically, for example, the vehicle control device
10 causes the vehicle control unit 16 to cause the vehicle 1 to
drive along the target trajectory along which the vehicle 1 passes
through the second path P2 via the first path P1 and the fifth path
P5 from the alighting porch CP1 and reaches the parking frame b22
which is the parking position (step S3). At this time, for example,
the vehicle control device 10 causes the recognition unit 11 to
recognize that the parking frame b13 in the first column and the
third row of the first parking section B1 is empty by recognizing
the driving environment around the vehicle 1 (step S4). For
example, the vehicle control device 10 causes the estimation unit
12 to estimate that the current position of the vehicle 1 is on the
first path P1 and is a position in front of the parking frame b13
in the first column and the third row of the first parking section
B1 (step S5).
[0054] Subsequently, the vehicle control device 10 causes the
retreated position decision unit 17 to decide the retreated
position of the vehicle 1 based on, for example, the communication
between the communication unit 13 and the management center 20 and
the driving environment recognized by the recognition unit 11 (Step
S6). More specifically, for example, the retreated position
decision unit 17 decides, as the retreated position of the vehicle
1, the parking frame b13 in the first column and the third row of
the first parking section B1 which is empty near the position of
the vehicle 1. This retreated position is an example, and the
retreated position decision unit 17 can decide any retreated
position based on, for example, the condition that can optimize the
parking efficiency.
[0055] Subsequently, the vehicle control device 10 performs the
communication via the communication unit 13, and transmits the
retreated position decided by the retreated position decision unit
17 to the management center 20 (step S7). The management center 20
records the retreated position of the vehicle 1 received via the
center communication unit 21 in the storage device 22.
Subsequently, the vehicle control device 10 causes the
determination unit 14 to determine whether or not the communication
failure occurs between the communication unit 13 and the management
center 20 (step S8). For example, when the determination unit 14
determines that there is no communication failure (NO), the vehicle
control device 10 compares the current position of the vehicle 1
estimated by the estimation unit 12 with the target trajectory
generated by the trajectory generation unit 15, and determines
whether or not the vehicle reaches the parking frame b22 as the
parking position which is the target position (step S9).
[0056] When the vehicle does not reach the target position (NO) as
the result of the determination (step S9) of whether or not the
vehicle reaches the target position, the vehicle control device 10
repeats the steps from the autonomous driving (step S3) to the
determination (step S8) of whether or not there is the
communication failure.
[0057] As a result, the retreated position of the vehicle 1 is
updated to the parking frame b11, . . . , and b26 near the current
position of the vehicle 1 which are optimum to improve the parking
efficiency at any time based on the latest driving environment
recognized by the recognition unit 11, the current position of the
vehicle 1, and the latest communication between the management
center 20 and the communication unit 13 of the vehicle control
device 10.
[0058] When it is determined that the vehicle reaches the target
position (YES) as the result of the determination (step S9) of
whether or not the vehicle reaches the target position, the vehicle
control device 10 transmits information indicating that the vehicle
reaches the parking position which is the target position to the
management center 20 via the communication unit 13 (step S10).
[0059] The management center 20 updates the empty vehicle
information of the parking lot PA based on the information received
via the center communication unit 21, for example. Thus, parking of
the vehicle 1 by the vehicle control device 10 and the vehicle
control system 100 is completed.
[0060] When the determination unit 14 determines that the
communication failure occurs (YES) as the result of the
determination (step S8) of whether or not the communication failure
occurs between the communication unit 13 and the management center
20, the vehicle control device 10 causes the trajectory generation
unit 15 to generate the target trajectory along which the vehicle 1
drives to the retreated position (step S11). Subsequently, in the
vehicle control device 10, the vehicle control unit 16 causes the
vehicle 1 to drive along the target trajectory (step S12), and the
recognition unit 11 recognizes the driving environment around the
vehicle 1 (step S13), and the estimation unit 12 estimates the
current position of the vehicle 1 (step S14). The autonomous
driving of the vehicle 1 (step S12), the recognition of the driving
environment (step S13), and the estimation of the position of the
vehicle 1 (step S14) can be simultaneously performed as in steps S3
to S5.
[0061] Subsequently, for example, the vehicle control device 10
compares the current position of the vehicle 1 estimated by the
estimation unit 12 with the target trajectory generated by the
trajectory generation unit 15, and determines whether or not the
vehicle reaches the retreated position that is the target position
(step S15)
[0062] As a result, when the vehicle does not reach the target
position (NO), the vehicle control device 10 repeats the steps from
the autonomous driving (step S12) to the estimation of the current
position of the vehicle 1 (step S14). When it is determined that
the vehicle 1 reaches the retreated position that is the target
position (YES) as the result of the determination (step S15) of
whether or not the vehicle reaches the target position, the vehicle
control device 10 causes the vehicle control unit 16 to stop the
vehicle 1, and completes the retreating of the vehicle 1.
[0063] As described above, in the vehicle control device 10 and the
vehicle control system 100 according to the present embodiment, the
vehicle control device 10 include the recognition unit 11, the
estimation unit 12, the communication unit 13, the determination
unit 14, the trajectory generation unit 15, the vehicle control
unit 16, and the retreated position decision unit 17. When the
determination unit 14 determines that the communication is
abnormal, the trajectory generation unit 15 is configured to
generate the target trajectory along which the vehicle 1 drives to
the retreated position.
[0064] With this configuration, it is possible to cause the vehicle
1 to drive from the position of the vehicle 1 when there is the
communication failure between the vehicle 1 and the management
center 20 to an appropriate retreated position near this position
and to cause the vehicle to be repeated. Thus, even when there is
the communication failure and the management center 20 cannot
receive the positional information of the vehicle 1, the management
center 20 can estimate that the vehicle 1 is retreating to the
retreated position near the position at which there is the
communication failure.
[0065] Thus, the position of the vehicle 1 can be estimated in a
narrower range by the management center 20, and after the
occurrence of the communication failure between the vehicle 1 and
the management center 20, it is not necessary to restrict the
moving-in and -out of other vehicles 1 over the target trajectory
of the vehicle 1. Accordingly, vehicles 1 other than the vehicle 1
in which the communication failure occurs can efficiently move in
and out, and the efficiency and reliability of the auto valet
parking can be improved.
[0066] For example, in the vehicle control device 10 and the
vehicle control system 100 according to the present embodiment, the
retreated position decision unit 17 of the vehicle control device
10 is configured to transmit the retreated position to the
management center 20 via the communication unit 13 as described
above. For example, when the determination unit 14 determines that
the communication is abnormal, the trajectory generation unit 15 of
the vehicle control device 10 is configured to generate the target
trajectory for causing the vehicle 1 to drive to the retreated
position transmitted to the management center 20 immediately before
the determination.
[0067] With this configuration, the retreated position of the
vehicle 1 after the occurrence of the communication failure can be
shared by the management center 20 and the vehicle control device
10, and the other vehicles 1 can be efficiently moved in and out
based on the shared retreated position of the vehicle 1.
Accordingly, the efficiency and reliability of the auto valet
parking can be further improved.
[0068] For example, in the vehicle control device 10 and the
vehicle control system 100 according to the present embodiment, the
communication unit 13 of the vehicle control device 10 is
configured to shorten the communication period at the intersection
XPT of the paths along which the vehicle 1 drives.
[0069] With this configuration, for example, when the vehicle 1 is
passing through the intersection XPT, the retreated position can be
decided in a shorter period, and the retreated position can be
transmitted to the management center 20. Thus, even when the
communication failure occurs between the vehicle 1 passing through
the intersection XPT having a plurality of branches and the
management center 20, the retreated position and the target
trajectory of the vehicle 1 can be more accurately estimated by the
management center 20. Accordingly, the efficiency and reliability
of the auto valet parking can be further improved.
[0070] For example, in the vehicle control device 10 and the
vehicle control system 100 according to the present embodiment, the
determination unit 14 of the vehicle control device 10 is
configured to shorten the period of the determination at the
intersection XPT of the paths along which the vehicle 1 drives.
[0071] With this configuration, for example, when the vehicle 1 is
passing through the intersection XPT, it is possible to determine
the occurrence of the communication failure in a shorter period.
Accordingly, even though the communication failure occurs between
the vehicle 1 passing through the intersection XPT having the
plurality of branches and the management center 20, the occurrence
of the communication failure is determined in a shorter time, and
the retreated position and the target trajectory of the vehicle 1
can be more accurately estimated by the management center 20.
Accordingly, the efficiency and reliability of the auto valet
parking can be further improved.
[0072] For example, in the vehicle control device 10 and the
vehicle control system 100 according to the present embodiment, the
vehicle control unit 16 of the vehicle control device 10 is
configured to decelerate the vehicle 1 at the intersection XPT of
the paths along which the vehicle 1 drives.
[0073] With this configuration, for example, even though the
communication failure occurs between the vehicle 1 passing through
the intersection XPT having the plurality of branches and the
management center 20, the amount of movement of the vehicle 1 in a
state in which the position of the vehicle 1 cannot be received by
the management center 20 can be reduced. Accordingly, the retreated
position and the target trajectory of the vehicle 1 after the
occurrence of the communication abnormality can be more accurately
estimated by the management center 20. Accordingly, the efficiency
and reliability of the auto valet parking can be further
improved.
[0074] The vehicle control system 100 according to the present
embodiment includes the vehicle control device 10 and the
management center 20 that manages the vehicle 1 having the vehicle
control device 10 mounted thereon. The management center 20
includes the center communication unit 21 that communicates with
the communication unit 13 of the vehicle control device 10, the
storage device 22 that has the map information of the parking lot
PA that the vehicle 1 moves in and out, and the computing device 23
that decides the parking position of the vehicle 1.
[0075] With this configuration, the management center 20
communicates with the communication unit 13 of the vehicle control
device 10 via the center communication unit 21, and can receive,
for example, the information such as the position, the speed, the
acceleration, the angular acceleration, the parking position, the
retreated position, and the target trajectory of the vehicle 1 from
the vehicle control device 10. The management center 20 can decide
the parking position of the vehicle 1 by a calculation unit based
on, for example, the received position of the vehicle 1 and the map
information and the empty vehicle information of the parking lot PA
stored in the storage device 22. The management center 20
communicates with the communication unit 13 of the vehicle control
device 10 via the center communication unit 21, and can transmit,
for example, the map information, the empty vehicle information,
and the parking position of the parking lot PA or the information
such as the target trajectory from the current position to the
parking position to the vehicle control device 10.
[0076] In the vehicle control system 100 according to the present
embodiment, the computing device 23 includes, for example, the
center determination unit 23a that determines whether or not the
communication failure with the vehicle 1 occurs. For example, the
center communication unit 21 receives the retreated position
transmitted from the vehicle 1 via the communication unit 13. The
storage device 22 records, for example, the retreated position of
the vehicle 1 received by the center communication unit 21. For
example, when the center determination unit 23a determines that the
communication is abnormal, the computing device 23 is configured to
estimate, as the position of the vehicle 1, the retreated position
stored in the storage device 22 immediately before the
determination.
[0077] With this configuration, the retreated position of the
vehicle 1 after the occurrence of the communication failure can be
shared by the management center 20 and the vehicle control device
10, and the other vehicles 1 can be efficiently parked based on the
shared retreated position of the vehicle 1. Accordingly, the
efficiency and reliability of the auto valet parking can be further
improved.
[0078] As described above, according to the present embodiment, it
is possible to provide the vehicle control device 10 and the
vehicle control system 100 capable of improving the efficiency and
reliability of the auto valet parking compared to the related art
when the communication failure occurs.
Second Embodiment
[0079] Hereinafter, a vehicle control device and a vehicle control
system 100A according to a second embodiment of the present
disclosure will be described with reference to FIG. 5 by using
FIGS. 1 and 3. FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating a schematic
configuration of a vehicle control device 10A and the vehicle
control system 100A according to the second embodiment of the
present disclosure.
[0080] The vehicle control device 10A and the vehicle control
system 100A according to the present embodiment are different from
the vehicle control device 10 and the vehicle control system 100
according to the first embodiment in that the vehicle control
device 10A includes an inter-vehicle communication unit 18. Other
points of the vehicle control device 10A and the vehicle control
system 100A according to the present embodiment are the same as
those of the vehicle control device 10 and the vehicle control
system 100 according to the first embodiment, and the same parts
are assigned by the same reference signs. Thus, the description
thereof will be omitted.
[0081] The vehicle control system 100A according to the present
embodiment includes the inter-vehicle communication unit 18 in
addition to the recognition unit 11, the estimation unit 12, the
communication unit 13, the determination unit 14, the trajectory
generation unit 15, the vehicle control unit 16, and the retreated
position decision unit 17. The inter-vehicle communication unit 18
includes, for example, the communication device 4 and the ECU 5 of
the vehicle 1, and employs a communication method different from
that of the communication unit 13. More specifically, for example,
Wi-Fi or Bluetooth (registered trademark) can be employed as the
communication method of the inter-vehicle communication unit 18.
The inter-vehicle communication unit 18 is configured to
communicate with the inter-vehicle communication unit 18 of another
vehicle 1 having the vehicle control device 10A mounted
thereon.
[0082] Hereinafter, operations of the vehicle control device 10A
and the vehicle control system 100A according to the present
embodiment will be described. FIG. 6 is a flowchart for describing
an example of the operations of the vehicle control device 10A and
the vehicle control system 100A illustrated in FIG. 5. The same
steps as those in the flowchart of the first embodiment illustrated
in FIG. 4 are assigned by the same reference signs, and the
description thereof will be omitted.
[0083] When the auto valet parking of the vehicle 1 having the
vehicle control device 10A according to the present embodiment
mounted thereon is performed, the steps from the communication
(step S1) between the communication unit 13 and the center
communication unit 21 of the management center 20 to the position
estimation (step S5) of the vehicle 1 are the same as those in the
first embodiment. In the present embodiment, for example, after the
position estimation (step S5) of the vehicle 1, the information on
the position of the vehicle 1 is transmitted by communicating with
the center communication unit 21 of the management center 20 via
the communication unit 13 without deciding the retreated position
of the vehicle 1 (step S7a).
[0084] Subsequently, the vehicle control device 10A causes the
determination unit 14 to determine whether or not the communication
failure occurs between the communication unit 13 and the management
center 20 (step S8). As a result, when it is determined that the
communication failure occurs (YES), the retreated position of the
vehicle 1 is decided as in the first embodiment (step S6).
Subsequently, the vehicle control device 10A causes the
inter-vehicle communication unit 18 to communicate with the
inter-vehicle communication unit 18 of the vehicle control device
10A mounted on another vehicle 1 around the vehicle 1 (step S7b).
More specifically, the vehicle control device 10A of the vehicle 1
in which the communication failure occurs transmit the information
such as the position, the speed, the acceleration, the angular
acceleration, the retreated position, and the target trajectory of
the vehicle 1 in which the communication failure occurs to another
vehicle 1 in which the communication failure does not occur via the
inter-vehicle communication unit 18.
[0085] The vehicle 1 in which the communication failure does not
occur transmits the information received from the vehicle 1 in
which the communication failure occurs to the center communication
unit 21 of the management center 20 via the communication unit 13
of the vehicle control device 10A. Accordingly, the management
center 20 can receive various pieces of information of the vehicle
1 in which the communication failure occurs in the communication
unit 13 via the vehicle 1 in which the communication failure does
not occur in the communication unit 13. Thereafter, as in the first
embodiment, the vehicle control device 10A generates the target
trajectory (step S11), causes the vehicle 1 to autonomously drive
(step S12), recognizes the driving environment (step S13), and
estimates the position of the vehicle 1 (step S14), and determines
that the vehicle reaches the target position (step S15).
[0086] For example, when it is determined that the vehicle reaches
the retreated position that is the target position (YES) as the
result of the determination (S15) of whether or not the vehicle
reaches the target position, the vehicle control device 10A
transmits information indicating that the vehicle reaches the
retreated position which is the target position to the vehicle 1 in
which the communication failure does not occur in the communication
unit 13 via the inter-vehicle communication unit 18 (step S16). The
vehicle 1 in which the communication failure does not occur in the
communication unit 13 transmits the information received from the
vehicle 1 in which the communication failure occurs in the
communication unit 13 to the center communication unit 21 of the
management center 20 via the communication unit 13 of the vehicle
control device 10A. The management center 20 updates the empty
vehicle information of the parking lot PA based on the information
received via the center communication unit 21, for example. As
described above, the retreating of the vehicle 1 due to the vehicle
control device 10A and the vehicle control system 100A is
completed.
[0087] The vehicle control device 10A and the vehicle control
system 100A according to the present embodiment include the
inter-vehicle communication unit 18 that enables the vehicle
control device 10A to perform communication between the vehicle 1
and another vehicle 1. When the determination unit 14 determines
that the communication of the communication unit 13 is abnormal,
the inter-vehicle communication unit 18 is configured to transmit
the position and speed of the vehicle 1 to another vehicle 1. With
this configuration, even when the communication failure occurs in
the communication unit 13 of the vehicle control device 10A, the
information can be transmitted to and received from the management
center 20 via the communication unit 13 of the vehicle control
device 10A of another vehicle 1. Accordingly, according to the
vehicle control device 10A and the vehicle control system 100A
according to the present embodiment, the same effects as those of
the vehicle control device 10 and the vehicle control system 100
according to the above-described first embodiment can be
obtained.
[0088] While the embodiments of the present disclosure have been
described in detail with reference to the drawings, the detailed
configurations are not limited to these embodiments, and even
changes in design without departing from the gist of the present
disclosure are included in the present disclosure. For example,
although it has been described in the above-described embodiments
that the auto valet parking in which the unmanned self-driving
vehicle autonomously drives and moves in and out of the parking
lot, the applications of the vehicle control device and the vehicle
control system according to the present disclosure are not limited
to the auto valet parking.
[0089] The vehicle control device and the vehicle control system
according to the present disclosure are applicable to normal
autonomous driving of an autonomous vehicle that communicates with
an external facility of a vehicle including a management
center.
[0090] According to the vehicle control device and the vehicle
control system of the present disclosure, when the communication
failure occurs between the autonomous vehicle that is autonomously
driving and the external facility, the autonomous vehicle can be
automatically stopped at a safe retreated position.
REFERENCE SIGNS LIST
[0091] 1 vehicle [0092] 10 vehicle control device [0093] 10A
vehicle control device [0094] 11 recognition unit [0095] 12
estimation unit [0096] 13 communication unit [0097] 14
determination unit [0098] 15 trajectory generation unit [0099] 16
vehicle control unit [0100] 17 retreated position decision unit
[0101] 18 Inter-vehicle communication unit [0102] 20 management
center (external facility) [0103] 21 center communication unit
[0104] 22 storage device [0105] 23 computing device [0106] 23a
center determination unit [0107] 100 vehicle control system [0108]
100A vehicle control system [0109] b13 parking frame (retreated
position) [0110] b22 parking frame (parking position) [0111] P1
path [0112] P2 path [0113] P3 path [0114] P4 path [0115] P5 path
[0116] XPT intersection
* * * * *